Empathy and Emotional Color Blindness

The emotional sphere of personality is one of the most significant. Our emotions and states help us understand our attitude toward what is happening. We are able not only to understand our own emotions, but also to distinguish the feelings of other people. This becomes possible through empathy.

The Concept of Empathy

Empathy is the ability to understand another person’s feelings through shared emotional experience. For more than twenty years, science has recognized the existence of mirror neurons. Researchers attribute to them the function of recognizing another person’s states. It is precisely благодаря this ability that we experience emotions in response to a movie plot and can empathize with its characters. Empathy is closely related to emotional intelligence and does not depend on the level of IQ.

Of course, empathy is not equally developed in all people. In the “person-to-person” professions, a high level of empathy is a requirement, especially for psychologists and teachers. The level of empathy is determined by emotional intelligence, the level of reflexivity (the ability to understand and analyze one’s own feelings), and the characteristics of upbringing.

Highly developed empathy, especially in professional psychologists, is often mistaken for extrasensory abilities. This is not surprising, as in many cultures there is a limited focus on the development of the emotional sphere. A certain type of upbringing has been shaped that promotes restraint and introversion, placing emphasis on the intellectual sphere. As a result, several generations of people have emerged who do not fully understand what is happening within them and are overwhelmed by the fear of facing themselves. In reality, there is nothing supernatural about a high level of empathy – it is one of the less studied capacities of human personality.

Why do we need empathy?

The ability to build close and genuinely meaningful relationships is based on it. Any form of communication requires empathy to be effective. Even seemingly pragmatic leaders of large organizations actively use this ability, as it allows them to establish close contact with another person and gain a deeper understanding of them.

Empathy is an innate ability and can be developed. However, not all people possess it. There are congenital conditions that prevent a person from understanding their own feelings and the feelings of others. Even mentally healthy individuals may experience emotional color blindness.

Emotional Color Blindness

Emotional color blindness is the inability of a person to understand, distinguish, and recognize their own emotions as well as the emotions of others. For example, a person may divide all their own emotions into positive and negative categories. The emotions of another person, however, become even more difficult for them to classify.

Emotional color blindness creates difficulties in understanding the causes of one’s own emotions and also makes it harder to express them to others. Such individuals do not know how to respond to others’ emotions. A well-known example is Sherlock Holmes, the main character of a well-known contemporary series. He could logically classify different emotions, but he was unable to empathize. He was confused by women’s tears or by Dr. Watson’s resentment. When expressing himself, he did not take into account the feelings of others. At the same time, his intellectual capacity is significantly above average.

Alexithymia

In 1973, the term “alexithymia” was introduced by psychiatrist Peter Sifneos. According to the scientist’s interpretation, this term includes:

• Difficulties or inability to verbalize one’s own feelings and the feelings of others.
• Difficulty distinguishing between emotions and bodily sensations.
• A low level of imagination and reduced ability to perceive symbols and metaphors.
• A focus on external circumstances at the expense of internal experiences.
• A predominance of precise, logical, and utilitarian thinking.

In addition, researchers suggest that people with alexithymia tend to have fewer dreams, which are also less vivid and detailed. However, it is not necessary for all signs of this phenomenon to be present in one person. Many people experience difficulties in several of these aspects, and this is indeed a problem.

At first glance, alexithymia may seem harmless and not particularly dangerous. After all, what is so concerning about experiencing difficulties with the traits listed above? The core issue lies in the fact that individuals with alexithymia experience no fewer emotions than others, but these emotions do not find an outlet. Yet an outlet is necessary in any case, and if it cannot occur naturally, the body will begin to search for alternative ways.

A person with alexithymia is unable to understand what they are feeling at a given moment or to recognize emotions they have experienced. At times, they may struggle even to distinguish joy from anger. Such distorted perception of one’s emotions inevitably manifests in behavior. In addition, such individuals lack an “inner voice.” Emotions do not guide their attitudes toward others, and they may not even understand whether they like someone or whether it is worth asking them out.

Despite such unpleasant and difficult-to-process manifestations, alexithymia is neither a disease nor a diagnosis. It is simply an individual personality trait. This characteristic can be either innate or acquired. The innate form results from physiological disturbances and is difficult to correct. Some researchers suggest that individuals with alexithymia may have impaired communication between the hemispheres of the brain.

In mentally healthy individuals, alexithymia may develop after severe emotional distress. Upbringing can also play a role. Emotionally detached or overly emotional parents may contribute to the development of this phenomenon in a child.

Alexithymia occurs in approximately 8% of the population. At the same time, men are affected nearly four times more often. However, certain traits of emotional color blindness are present in a much larger number of people.

The Impact of Emotional Color Blindness and the Development of Empathy

The main issue with emotional color blindness lies in its consequences. As the body seeks an outlet for unprocessed emotions, it may express them through physical illness. Emotional color blindness can lead to psychosomatic disorders. In addition, this phenomenon creates difficulties in communication. For this reason, it is important to work on developing one’s emotional sphere and empathy.

To develop empathy, it is important to balance the world of one’s thoughts and feelings, not to devalue emotions, to accept them, and to allow oneself to experience them. Reading fiction can also be helpful. Keeping an emotions journal is especially useful, where one can record their feelings and experiences and reflect on their causes.

People are social beings, and empathy is essential for us. Both on a societal level and for each individual, it is beneficial to develop one’s inner world and focus on the quality of emotional connections with others. In this case, relationships become stronger, and a person can feel happier.

Author: Anna BUNYAK – Psychologist

Editor: Nataliya CHAYKA – Editor-in-Chief of ESTportal
Translation: Nataliya CHAYKA

First published: 2016
Updated in line with current guidelines and relevant research: 2026